NCAA Football Championship Weekend Preview

Conference Championship Weekend is here, and with this being the first year of the newly expanded 12-team College Football Playoff, even more is on the line than ever before. Some teams are going to get into the postseason no matter what happens on Friday and Saturday.

For instance, Oregon is undefeated on the season, and even if they fall in the Big 12 Championship Game, they’re not going to be eliminated from the playoffs. However, other squads are facing must-win situations.

Still, there are some teams that aren’t playing this weekend who have rooting interests in these games. Teams like Miami (FL) who came up on the outside looking in with the most recent rankings need a few things to happen if they’re going to have a chance at playing for a National Championship.

We’ve got you covered with a preview of the five biggest conference championship games, predictions, and how these games may impact the landscape as we go into the playoffs with 12 teams for the first time ever.

(20) UNLV Rebels @ (10) Boise State Broncos
Mountain West Championship | Friday, 8 PM ET | Fox | Broncos -4

As part of the revamped 12-team playoff, the champions from each of the Power 5 conferences gets a spot in the postseason. Since the Pac-12 isn’t a functional conference at the moment, the Mountain West Champion seems likely to earn a place in the postseason.

If you haven’t been keeping up with the Mountain West, you’re missing out on watching a young man who’s either going to finish first or second in the Heisman Trophy race this season. Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty is arguably the best player in the nation, but he will face off against the only team that managed to slow him down this season.

Boise State faced off against UNLV on October 25 in a game that the Rebels led after three quarters. Eventually, Boise State took the lead and held onto win by a score of 29-24, handing UNLV one of its two losses on the season. The Broncos come into this game with only one defeat on their record, a three-point loss to Oregon.

Ultimately, this game largely rests on the shoulders (or legs) of Ashton Jeanty. The Heisman hopeful will have a chance to put some distance between himself and Colorado’s Travis Hunter in the race for the Heisman with a big game against UNLV.

The committee probably isn’t going to put UNLV and Boise State in the 12-team playoff, so this game is a win-and-in proposition for both sides. That could have the potential to change if UNLV wins and there are some other upsets across the board, but even then, it’s unlikely that two Mountain West teams see the postseason.

Prediction: Boise State 34, UNLV 28

(16) Iowa State Cyclones @ (15) Arizona State Sun Devils
Big 12 Championship | Noon ET | ABC | Sun Devils -2

It’s almost a certainty that only one team from the Big 12 is going to get into the playoffs. The conference had four teams finish 7-2 in conference games, while three of those teams finished 10-2 overall.

Colorado could have earned a shot at the Big 12 title had they not fallen to Kansas a couple of weeks back, but even with the loss, the Buffaloes had a chance to make the title game, but they needed some help.

That help didn’t come, as Coach Prime and company were eliminated, and so was BYU, who at one point, looked like a lock to play for a Big 12 Title. That was before the Cougars lost to Arizona State and Kansas.

Thanks to strength of schedule, the Iowa State Cyclones and the Arizona State Sun Devils are going to face off for the Big 12 Championship and an appearance in the postseason. The loser, who will tally their third loss of the season, is going to be eliminated.

Arizona State comes into this one with the momentum, as the Sun Devils have won their last five games, including a 49-7 victory over Arizona during rivalry week. Oddsmakers are giving ASU a slight edge in this one, but if it comes down to a field goal, things may get tricky. ASU’s kicking problems have been well-documented this season, and the Sun Devils have made just one of their last six field goal attempts.

Iowa State has a pair of thousand-yard receivers on the roster while Arizona State will be without its top receiver. ASU is hot right now, but Iowa State has put up 28 or more points in six of its last eight games.

Prediction: Iowa State 27, Arizona State 21

(5) Georgia Bulldogs @ (2) Texas Longhorns
SEC Championship | 4 PM ET | ABC | Longhorns -2.5

This is another championship game that’s a rematch from earlier in the season, a game which Georgia won. However, there’s more on the line now. Both Georgia and Texas are probably going to make the postseason.

However, the winner of this one can expect a first-round bye. That 30-15 loss to Georgia is the only blemish on Texas’ record this season, while the Bulldogs have dropped a pair of games, including one to Ole Miss. Still, Georgia is firmly in the playoff mix, and even with a loss, they’ll probably get into the 12-team College Football Playoff.

It's unfair to say that the Bulldogs got lucky when they knocked off Texas on October 19th, but the Longhorns did squander three interceptions from Carson Beck. However, Texas’ offense hasn’t looked all that great during the second half of the season outside of their game against Florida.

The greatest impact of this game involves seeding. If Georgia wins, do they move up to the second seed?

If so, what happens to Notre Dame? If Texas wins, where does Georgia fall to, and do we possibly get a round three between these two teams in the second round of the postseason?

Prediction: Texas 30, Georgia 24

(17) Clemson Tigers @ (8) SMU Mustangs
ACC Championship | 8 PM ET | ABC | Mustangs -2.5

This is one of the most interesting championship games when it comes to potential playoff implications, especially after Clemson fell to South Carolina last week during rivalry weekend. Unfortunately for the Gamecocks, it’s unlikely that their impressive turnaround is going to be enough to get them into the postseason.

Clemson has to win this game to get into the College Football Playoff. There is absolutely no path for a three-loss ACC team to get into the post season. However, there is some concern from the ACC that SMU may be left on the outside looking in if they drop this game.

The winner is going to make the playoff, but SMU losing muddies the waters a bit. Ultimately, the number of losses behind the Mustangs probably keeps them in regardless, but there’s a reason that the conference is already lobbying for SMU to be in regardless.

Ultimately, it probably won’t matter. SMU is better than Clemson this season in virtually every category.

Prediction: SMU 34, Clemson 23

(3) Penn State Nittany Lions @ (1) Oregon Ducks
Big 10 Championship | 8 PM ET | CBS | Ducks -3.5

The only thing that’s going to be affected in this game is seeding. The winner of this game is likely to go into the CFP as the top-ranked team, thus earning a first-round bye. The loser is going to host a playoff game, most likely against the 11th or 12th seed. With that in mind, it may seem like there’s not much on the line, but that’s not the case at all.

Oregon is looking to join the Texas Longhorns as teams that are vying for a conference title in their first season in a new conference. The Ducks have been incredible this season, and are the only undefeated FBS school remaining. A win against Penn State, who only has one loss (Ohio State) on the season, would cement Oregon as the unanimous number-one seed ahead of the playoff.

For Penn State, potentially being the top seed (it remains to be seen if they would move ahead of Texas with a win), could put them in a position to face Ohio State in the second round. If Penn State wins but doesn’t get the one seed, they would most likely play the winner of a game between Indiana and Georgia (assuming Georgia loses the SEC title game).

Prediction: Oregon 37, Penn State, 23

Tune in For College Football

Conference Championship Weekend should be one of the most exciting weekends of the season, especially with so much at stake in the College Football Playoff. With Selection Sunday coming up on December 8, this is the last chance for teams to lay claim to a spot in the first ever 12-team playoff.